"Hah...!"
Before Enji could even finish his sentence, Masanaga leveled his long sword and lunged at Yugo.
Though caught slightly off guard, Yugo moved to intercept. However, Ryuga stepped in front of him first, drawing Ryuo-ga and catching Masanaga's downward strike.
"Attacking in the middle of a conversation... The heir to the House of Azano is a man of little honor, it seems."
"The battle has already begun! It's your own fault for being careless!"
It was a fair point, but Ryuga narrowed his eyes at Masanaga’s behavior regardless of the logic. It was a sneak attack, plain and simple.
Ryuga poured strength into his arms and shoved Masanaga back. While he held his blade at the ready, Enji resumed his explanation.
"Gunbai War Fan: Gale and Raging Waves... a magic item that distributes magic power to my allies and enhances their physical capabilities. With this, my legion gains unparalleled strength. Furthermore—"
"My magic item, Noted Sword: Jinrai! It grants me the power to manipulate lightning at will, but that isn't its true worth! This blade's ultimate ability is to grant the wielder strength proportional to the number of subordinates on the field!"
Masanaga roared, hoisting his long sword high.
Lightning gathered around the blade, simultaneously drawing in the aura-like energy erupting from Enji and his subordinates. With a massive downward swing, Masanaga unleashed the golden radiance toward Ryuga and the others.
"Kyaaaaaaaa!"
"Uwaaaaaaaa!"
The students screamed as they watched the lightning storm tear through the duel grounds, heading straight for them.
The lightning was deflected and neutralized by the barrier surrounding the arena, but the raw power of the strike was obvious. The spectators swallowed hard, the air thick with sudden tension.
"Heh heh heh... Well? I summon the subordinates and buff them with my magic item, which in turn buffs Masanaga through my ability, while he gains even more power from the effect of his own magic item... A perfect synergy, wouldn't you say?"
"We call it the Formation of Gale and Thunder! The way the wind and lightning combine is a spectacle of Furious Gale and Thunder! It is an invincible collaboration capable of striking down even a storm!"
Enji acted as the general, summoning a legion and granting them massive power-ups with his magic item. Masanaga, the lightning-fast vanguard, grew stronger the more subordinates he led into the fray.
The fighting styles and magic items of the two were perfectly synchronized. Even Yugo and his teammates, who had narrowly avoided the strike, were grimacing at the sheer nuisance of this combination.
"The Formation of Gale and Thunder, huh... Giving such a grand name to a simple magic item activation."
"...Hey, did you two notice?"
"What is it, Yugo? Did you spot a weakness in their coordination?"
The Formation of Gale and Thunder produced a formidable effect through synergy. Hoping Yugo’s serious tone meant he had found a countermeasure, Marcos looked to him expectantly.
Yugo met Marcos’s gaze with a grave expression beneath his helmet.
"That strategy of theirs... Katsuyori is totally being left out!"
Marcos face-planted at Yugo's utter non-sequitur.
The disappointment of being let down after such high expectations was immense. As he scrambled back to his feet, he barked at Yugo.
"Why are you focusing on something so stupid?! That has nothing to do with breaking their strategy!"
"No, but isn't it kind of sad? He's being totally excluded from the group..."
"Do you really have time to feel sorry for the enemy?! We're in the middle of a duel!"
Faced with Yugo’s incredible obliviousness, Marcos grabbed him by the shoulders and shook him for emphasis.
While the two were engaged in their comedy-routine-like exchange, a similar argument was actually breaking out among the heirs of Yamato—and it was exactly what Yugo had pointed out.
"Enji! Masanaga! What is the meaning of this?! I told you to leave Yugo Clay to me! I said I would settle this one-on-one!"
"What are you misunderstanding? We never said a word about agreeing to your demands. You were just getting worked up on your own."
"Our objective is to win this duel and secure the return of Raiha-dono and the others! What is wrong with fighting in the most efficient manner possible to achieve that goal?"
"But my martial prowess won't be shown—!"
"Then stay back. We are more than enough to handle this without your help."
"Guh...!"
Yugo's observation that Katsuyori was being left out wasn't off the mark at all.
Apparently, Katsuyori hadn't been informed of this strategy beforehand. Fixated on a one-on-one honorable duel, he clearly didn't approve of using numerical superiority and magic item synergy to win.
However, Enji and Masanaga didn't care about Katsuyori’s feelings; they had flatly dismissed him as unnecessary.
After being told his participation wasn't required, Katsuyori let out a frustrated groan and grimaced. Ignoring him, Enji moved to the rear of the formation, guarded by his subordinates.
"I'll leave the rest to you, Masanaga. Don't mess this up."
"Yeah, leave it to me. There's nothing to worry about. With your legion and your magic item backing me, I am invincible!"
Masanaga responded to Enji, his blade wreathed in crackling sparks as golden magic power erupted from his entire body.
Readjusting his long sword, he fixed his gaze on Yugo’s team. Then, giving the order to the Warrior Band Enji had summoned, he charged.
"Men! The enemy is those three! Take their heads and claim the glory! Charge!"